This year our Character Education theme is “Communities form Connections.” Through building relationships, we can build a better school, community and world. Each month we will highlight a character trait and use a read aloud to reinforce this trait.

September is Communities Show Empathy. Wilson Kimeli Naiyomah wrote 14 Cows for America. One inscription reads, “To all the little children who read this book. You are the peace the world has been waiting for. May you grow to be compassionate diplomats.” You have the ability to make the world and our school a better place.

What can you do this year to heal a sorrowing heart? How will you show empathy?

Please post your comment to our class blog. Remember… this blog is an extension of our classroom. Communicate clearly and be respectful of others.

The tangram is a puzzle consisting of seven flat shapes, called tans, which are put together to form shapes. The objective of the puzzle is to form a specific shape (given only an outline or silhouette) using all seven pieces, which may not overlap. It is one of the most popular puzzles in the world. Tangrams are an excellent way to increase mental and visual skills. Using imagination, geometrical shapes, letters, numbers, figures, boats, animals and objects can bring great fun along with a challenge.

Patriotism is the word of the month for our Character Education program. On May 17th we will come together as a school community and wear red, white and blue.

Patriotism is the quality of being supportive for one’s country. One way to show devotion to our country is to honor and respect the American flag. Pam Ryan’s The Flag We Love reminds us of our country’s ideals.

Ronald Reagan said, “If we love our country, we should also love our countrymen.” Another way to show your patriotism is to honor our service men and women. Vetiquette is a character education program that teaches children the importance of showing gratitude for our veterans and particularly for gold star families (families that have lost an immediate family member in service to our country). Here are additional biographies of some true American Heroes – Vetiquette 2019.

A BlueStar Family Member is someone who has an immediate family member serving now. (Immediate family member means a parent, child or sibling)

A Gold Star Family member is someone who had an immediate family member die while serving our country.

Celebrating holidays like Labor Day, Patriot Day, Independence Day and Flag Day are ways to show Patriotism. Memorial Day is this month and is an important holiday to show patriotism. Here’s more.

Swish is a spatial card game that challenges you to be the first to make matches, or “Swishes.” Swishes are made by stacking as few as two or as many as 12 cards so that every ball swishes into a hoop of the same color. The player with the most matches at the end of the game wins. Let’s have some ThinkFun!

It is time to get those creative juices going again! Mrs. McBride is offering another opportunity to put your skills to work and show your spirit. Find out more details for this month’s challenge here – The Patriotism Challenge.

You have been working diligently on breaking codes with numbers and colors. Now it is time for letters and symbols.

Codes have been around for a very long time. Throughout history, world events have changed because of secret messages. Sometimes, however, it is important that only a few people understand the message. In the world of cryptology, codes are used to make messages secret by changing the words into something else. In order for your friends to understand the coded message, they need the key!

Pigpen – The Pigpen code is easier than it looks and is most students’ favorite. First, draw out the two grids below and fill in the letters. Find out more about this special coding here – Pigpen Code.

Try this online conversion. Just type your message and the script will code your message – Text to Pigpen Cipher.

TEAMWORK: According to Dictionary.com, teamwork is the cooperative and coordinated effort on the part of a group of persons acting together as a team or in the interests of a common cause.

Your class will be arranged into groups. Each group will be assigned a problem to solve in order to unlock one of the locks. Go to this site – TEAMWORK. Click on the letter in the word “teamwork” that your group is assigned, and the link will take you to the directions of your task.